Booting Fossapup64 from existing GRUB2

[rustypup]

Thought this might be useful to some people. If like me you have another distro installed to a hard drive and booting via GRUB2, and have been using chainloader to boot your USB Pups from GRUB2, you will find this method does not work with Fossapup64. See screenshot of my 40_custom file below for how to make GRUB2 boot Fossapup64. You want to look at the last menu entry, you'll see my old chainloader puppy entries above.

40_custom_scrnsht.png (386.01 KiB) Viewed 1315 times

If you don't know where the 40_custom file is, it was in /etc/grub.d/ on my Debian install - should be same in other distros. Edit the file as root and run update-grub afterwards. You'll need to get your UUID for the drive/flash drive upon which you have installed fossapup64. Open a terminal and type blkid to get this. Change pmedia to whatever type of drive you have installed puppy on. Mine was usbflash.

Hope this helps someone

[williwaw]

What boot loader is installed on sdf1?

[rustypup]

@williwaw - no bootloader installed on sdf1 - booting puppy directly from GRUB2 on sda (where my Debian is installed).

[redandwhitestripes]

I'm somewhere in this ballpark but I don't quite understand what I'm doing.

I was unable to install Fossa to Grub from inside Fossa itself as it said the drive was ntfs and could not be used. I can't format the drive as it's running Windows 10 which I need for work.

However I managed to install Linux Mint 20 alongside Windows 10 on the same drive, Mint created an ext4 partition within.

So I am now running Grub 2 at boot and choosing between Mint and Windows 10, can anyone please tell me in baby steps how to manually install Fossa to my hard drive and add it onto the Grub menu at boot?

BTW Grub used to be easy to edit in Puppy but in Mint it seems far more complicated, there are several grub files in different places and some of them warn not to edit.

[Clarity]

It is TOO complicated to instruct you in how to approach it as you are asking. I could, but it would be drawn out.

I, instead, offer a very simple solution to run a FossaPUP64 immediately after you make your USB stick. Directions are here if you are willing to give a go. And it allows you to boot Win10 + Mint + FossaPUP64 + etc with little to no knowledge.

Make the USB, boot it, hit the enter key and wait for 30 seconds to choose to boot your OSes and the PUPs.

I dont expect that you will have any problems, but should you, ask on that thread and someone will help you.

[thinkpadfreak]

So I am now running Grub 2 at boot and choosing between Mint and Windows 10, can anyone please tell me in baby steps how to manually install Fossa to my hard drive and add it onto the Grub menu at boot?

I recommend that you give grub2config by shinobar a try.
It is a tool to install and configure the bootloader (grub2), and it supports the ntfs filesystem.
grub2config
viewtopic.php?f=155&t=3360

[redandwhitestripes]

Clarity and thinkpadfreak, thank you for the replies and I will try both approaches. I've also just discovered the incredible batocera linux, so I have a lot to explore

[J_D_]

I'm somewhere in this ballpark but I don't quite understand what I'm doing.

I was unable to install Fossa to Grub from inside Fossa itself as it said the drive was ntfs and could not be used. I can't format the drive as it's running Windows 10 which I need for work.

However I managed to install Linux Mint 20 alongside Windows 10 on the same drive, Mint created an ext4 partition within.

So I am now running Grub 2 at boot and choosing between Mint and Windows 10, can anyone please tell me in baby steps how to manually install Fossa to my hard drive and add it onto the Grub menu at boot?

BTW Grub used to be easy to edit in Puppy but in Mint it seems far more complicated, there are several grub files in different places and some of them warn not to edit.

I know this is an old post but maybe this will help someone. I have a Windows 10 laptop. Using Windows I split the HD into 3 partitions. First is W 10. Then on the third I used Lick to install 3 Puppies. Fossa, Xenial and Fatdog. Then I loaded Mint from a flash drive and installed it on the second partition. On start up it shows Mint and Windows. If I click Windows I get Lick and Windows. I can choose Windows or Lick to get my Pups. This was so easy I was amazed.